


Organic Attraction

by writingblankspaces



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Office, Background Relationships, Bottom Kim Jongin | Kai, Chanyeol is Demisexual, Demisexuality, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Misunderstandings, Netflix and Chill, Nosy Friendgroup, Thirsty Kim Jongin | Kai, Top Park Chanyeol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:22:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26733538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writingblankspaces/pseuds/writingblankspaces
Summary: Jongin really misunderstood his co-worker's offer to watch Netflix.
Relationships: Kim Jongin | Kai/Park Chanyeol
Comments: 23
Kudos: 105
Collections: Honey Boy: Round 1





	Organic Attraction

**Author's Note:**

> Also, I want to give a shoutout to my beta, Sarah, for giving me endless amounts of encouragement and inspiration to power through and finish this.

Chanyeol hunched over his desk, squinting at the screen as his long fingers flew over the keyboard. If he kept working at that current pace, he’d be finished with a full day’s work shortly after lunchtime. 

Which left the rest of the day for him to pretend like he wasn’t playing Animal Crossing underneath his desk with an old Excel spreadsheet pulled up on his computer screen for show. 

Jongin knew it all because if he leaned back exactly 120 degrees in his chair, he had a perfect view inside of Chanyeol’s cubicle.

And no, it wasn’t weird that he knew that. 

He was just really observant and Chanyeol happened to be the only person whose cubicle opened up in Jongin’s line of sight. So, instead of watching the paint peel from the corner of the ceiling over his workspace, he watched Chanyeol. 

Not only was he nicer to look at, but he was pretty entertaining as well.

With Springtime kicking up pollen, Chanyeol occasionally had these sneezing fits where he would stare off into space for a few moments, then milliseconds later, he’d turn away and sneeze more than three times in a row.

Every time it happened, he looked bewildered like he wasn’t sure what was happening and what sneezes were. Something that was equal parts endearing and hilarious.

“You know, instead of watching him like a creep, you should just ask him out.” Sehun’s words made Jongin look up from his spaghetti, embarrassment clearly written on his face because he was right. 

He’d been watching Chanyeol for upwards of three months and with every fleeting Bumble, Tinder, and Hinge date Jongin went on, it became harder and harder to find interest in anyone other than the sneezing giant across the office. 

It was obvious he was kind of hung up on Chanyeol, despite that they’d had maybe three conversations the whole time either of them had worked at the office. 

“What if he likes being a creep?” Wonshik added as he sat down at the table. While he settled in his chair, his lanyard dipped into his bowl of tomato soup.

Salty from the creep comment, Jongin didn’t say a word and just watched as Wonshik’s ID sunk further into the red, soupy abyss.

“Don’t act like Sehun hadn’t been pinning over Group Leader Kim since he was an intern,” Jongin grumbled, daring to look up from his Tubberware. 

Just as he’d expected, Sehun was glaring at him and looked to be seconds away from throwing a french fry or two at Jongin’s head.

The said french fry dropped back onto Sehun’s plate when Kim Junmyeon walked past their table and gave Sehun a shy wave. He immediately flushed and returned the wave, then shoved some of his sandwich in his mouth. 

The two had been dating ‘secretly’ for almost six months and thought they were being subtle and inconspicuous. Instead, it was so terribly obvious that everyone just pretended not to notice. 

“Just ask him to hang out at your house, what do you have to lose? Besides, you never know what could come from it.” No one was sure when Taemin had joined the table and conversation, but Jongin actually didn’t mind the sound of his suggestion.

Not only was Chanyeol funny, but he was also insanely hot and, well, Jongin _hadn’t_ gotten laid in a while. So, why not kill two birds with one stone? 

He could kill this weird obsessive crush and maybe scratch an itch or two.

Jongin didn’t tell any of his friends his plans, just in case he got rejected, but there was a pep in his step as he walked from the breakroom back to his cubicle.

The pep could’ve also been attributed to the fact that Wonshik finally realized the state of his ID and by that point, the whole thing was ruined. 

“I’m not the only one who’s salty,” Jongin quipped when his friend saw his ID and Wonshik stared at him with a sour look on his face. 

“Tomato soup isn’t salty, you asshole.” Taemin watched the exchange with a cheesy grin on his face. When Wonshik walked away, muttering about having to get a new ID, he burst into laughter.

The longer Jongin waited to make his move, the more nervous he got. 

With his stomach tossing with anxiety and his hands sweating, Jongin leaned back in his chair again and looked into Chanyeol’s cubicle, watching him gather his things to go home.

It was Friday, so that meant he was getting himself together a bit earlier because he probably met up with his friends or something. If Jongin wanted to catch him, he needed to move quickly when the clock struck six. 

So, with his bag in hand, right as the clock changed, Jongin strolled over to Chanyeol’s cubicle and leaned inside, a genial smile on his face. 

“Hey, um, Chanyeol, right?” Chanyeol looked up from shutting down his computer and nodded, his eyes wide. He kept blinking like there was something in his eyes, but Jongin ignored it and continued talking, “so I remember you mentioned you liked Star Wars the last time we talked? Well, Netflix added the newest one and I was wondering if you wanted to come over to my place and watch it with me? I can order pizza and stuff.” 

While Jongin waited for a response, he held his breath and blood rushed in his ears. God, if Chanyeol turned him down, he’d look so fucking stupid. 

There was more blinking in addition to some open and closing of his mouth, then finally a deep-voiced, “uh, yeah! Sounds great, Jongin. I’ll, um, give you my number and you can text me the details and stuff.” He closed the sentence by licking his lips and Jongin debated screaming, but didn’t. 

He didn’t want to scare off Chanyeol quite yet.

After Chanyeol gave it to him, he suggested that they walk out together.

“I also heard good things about that Disney+ show ‘The Mandalorian.’ I keep seeing the baby Yoda memes and I wanna watch that too.” Chanyeol’s eyes got this sparkle and he chatted with Jongin about how good the show was until they had to part at the front entrance.

“Don’t forget to text me,” Chanyeol reminded Jongin before he went to his car and Jongin nodded, squeezing his phone harder in his hand as his chest bloomed with heat. 

Chanyeol smelled so good.

That was something he hadn’t noticed before. 

Showered and changed into his pajamas, Jongin shuffled around his house with a broom, a Swiffer mop, and a plastic dustpan.

It wasn’t even that dirty in his apartment, but the thought of Chanyeol coming over made him feel like cleaning. Even if he had his way and Chanyeol only saw a bit of the house before they made their way to the bedroom—skipping the whole Netflix part in general—it should still be cleaned. 

Just to be sure. 

When things were clean enough to ease Jongin’s worries, he sat down and opened a new message, hovering his hands over the screen. 

He didn’t want to be too casual and make Chanyeol just think they were _only_ going to hang out. But, he also didn’t want to come across as too desperate either. 

No one wanted someone too thirsty. 

Eventually, he settled on an ambiguously chill message, informing Chanyeol that it was Jongin sending the message and that he should come to Jongin’s apartment between 8 and 8:30 PM with the address attached. 

When Jongin pressed send, his heart skipped a beat and he threw his phone down on the couch, leaning back with a sigh. 

With everything clean, the only thing Jongin could do to keep himself from chewing his fingernails into nubs, was to go for a walk then binge The Office for the fifth time until he went to sleep. 

At three o’clock, the day of, he took an extra long shower, shaved his legs, did a little body hair landscaping and some other necessary things to prepare for the night. 

He was finally going to get Park Chanyeol right where he wanted him and he was willing to pull out all the stops. 

Shaved, scrubbed and primed for his night, Jongin emerged from the bathroom a full hour later with a grin on his face.

He danced around in his underwear for a few hours, doing some last-minute dusting, arranging the pillows and blankets on his sofa, and making a show of pulling up Netflix on his TV before he ordered the pizza and breadsticks.

When he picked up his phone, there was a text from Chanyeol telling him that he was bringing some wine and that he should be there in twenty minutes...fifteen minutes ago.

Jongin let out a squeak and rushed into his bedroom, throwing open his closet and trying to find something decent to wear. 

That went out the window when he heard the doorbell ring and he had to throw on the clothes that were within grabbing distance, a pair of running shorts and a ratty old t-shirt.

Jongin cursed his poor time management skills as he trudged to the door, opening it with a smile that he hoped was inviting. 

“Hey Jongin.”

“Hey,” Jongin greeted, opening the door and welcoming Chanyeol in. He took the bottle to go open it and get glasses.

Chanyeol gave his outfit a once-over and nodded before looking around Jongin’s apartment as he awkwardly held a bottle of Moscato.

He was seething that he was wearing little more than his pajamas, but he was trying his best to maintain the mood because he’d been anticipating this for a while.

Just as he was about to bring the glasses to the living room, the doorbell rang again. Before he could move to answer it, Chanyeol did it for him and immediately reached in his pocket, paying for the food. 

It was something small, but it made Jongin’s heart flutter in his chest and with red cheeks, he watched as Chanyeol arranged the food on the table and turned toward him, a goofy smile on his face.

The idea that Chanyeol might have the same idea as him for tonight set a swarm of butterflies loose in his stomach. 

He returned the smile, feeling considerably less annoyed as he settled next to Chanyeol on the couch after he’d handed him a glass. 

“So, are we going to watch the movie now or?” Jongin’s eyes were locked on Chanyeol’s lips as he spoke and it was only after Chanyeol had repeated himself that he nodded and fumbled with the remote to start the movie.

Instead of watching the movie, which Jongin couldn’t hear over the sound of his racing heart, he kept watching Chanyeol mechanically lift pieces of pizza to his mouth and eat them without looking away from the screen.

His brain kept telling him to make a move to get Chanyeol riled up or something, but Chanyeol would always pick that moment to turn toward Jongin and say something. 

Finally, when the movie was about halfway done, Jongin reached over Chanyeol for a breadstick and put his hand on the man’s thigh under the guise of balancing himself. When he sat down, he didn’t remove it.

Chanyeol had given it a glance and when Jongin attempted to rub Chanyeol’s thigh, the man’s brow furrowed and he moved, reaching for the blankets.

“Are you cold, Jongin?” Chanyeol asked, spreading said blanket over Jongin’s shoulders. 

Embarrassed and stumped as to why Chanyeol wasn’t making moves of his own, Jongin just nodded and moved his hand back to his own lap. 

It took almost twenty minutes into the climax of the movie for Jongin to make another move. This one was going to be bolder than his previous one and he was counting on it speeding things up.

He put his arm around Chanyeol’s shoulders and snuggled closer, fitting himself against Chanyeol’s larger frame with a sigh and his eyes glued to the TV. This time, Chanyeol—if Jongin wasn’t hallucinating right then—moved closer to him, further engulfing Jongin in Chanyeol’s body heat and the addicting scent of his cologne. 

This was a good start. 

The best of starts.

When the movie winded down, just as the credits started to roll, Jongin craned his neck and reached up to cradle Chanyeol’s jaw before he kissed him.

The way Chanyeol sort of flailed into the kiss wasn’t what Jongin had expected, but it only took Chanyeol a few moments to settle into it with his hands around Jongin’s waist.

“Wha-what was that for?” Chanyeol stammered, his cheeks heating up a few moments after they pulled apart. 

Jongin blinked once. 

Then twice.

Then again just to make sure this was really happening to him right now.

“Um, well, I uh, like you Chanyeol. I invited you over to my house to Netflix and chill,” Jongin explained slowly like Chanyeol was a child. 

This time Chanyeol blinked and he brought his hands up to his cheeks, a shocked expression in his face. 

“Did I misunderstand everything then?” Chanyeol whispered, the pink flush crawling up his neck to color his face and ears. When Jongin remained silent, also blushing, Chanyeol got the answer to his questions fairly quickly. “So this was _that_ kind of Netflix and chill.” 

Jongin was mortified. 

Also, even if Chanyeol wasn’t upset or weirded out by the kiss or his come-ons, the fact that Chanyeol had come to his apartment under the impression that this was a casual, _friendly_ meeting, made him feel skeevy and grimy.

“If you want to leave, that’s okay. I’m so sorry,” Jongin started, poking his finger through the hole in his ratty shorts. He couldn’t even look Chanyeol in the eye as he spoke. 

“I—uh—maybe I should leave,” as Chanyeol spoke, he moved to start cleaning up, but Jongin shook his head, whispering a quiet, “just leave it. It’s okay, really.” 

“I’m sorry, Jongin. I…” Chanyeol trailed off and he stood by the door, shoving his feet into his shoes. Before he unlocked the door and left, he let out a sigh and gave Jongin an apologetic grimace, “regardless, I still had a good time tonight. I hope we can do it again in the future. I—um—guess I’ll see you at work Monday.” 

“So after the movie ended and you kissed him, he just left? Did you tell him to go?” 

After the disaster of a dick appointment (date?) or whatever it was, Jongin cleaned up the mess they’d made, folded the blanket and washed the wine glasses before he sat in the middle of his bed and cried.

He felt so stupid and it felt dumb to be crying about feeling stupid, but he couldn’t stop. 

Jongin only stopped feeling sorry for himself after Taemin and Wonshik Facetimed him around 12 AM, excited to see what Chanyeol looked like shirtless. 

Instead, all they got was a puffy, red-faced Jongin sniffing in the camera. Immediately, Taemin and Wonshik asked what happened and he explained, albeit stopping to sniffle every few sentences.

“What I’m not understanding is why you’re crying. It doesn’t seem like he told you he didn’t like you, he just wasn’t expecting for you to attempt sitting on his dick tonight. Didn’t he say he wanted to do the hanging out thing again?” Jongin nodded at Wonshik’s words, let out a miserable sigh and slumped his shoulders.

“What if I made it weird for him now? I’m so fucking stupid.” 

“I mean, you’re definitely stupid, but not for this,” Taemin started off, leaning closer to the phone so he could see Jongin better, “he said he wants to hang out again. So this obviously didn’t make it weird. If someone put me in an awkward situation, there’s no way I would want to hang out again.” 

That made sense, but Jongin wasn’t going to give Taemin the satisfaction of agreeing, so he just kept sniffling and rubbing his eyes in silence. 

So maybe he hadn’t messed things up beyond repair. 

That was the thought that finally lulled him to sleep after he hung up with his friends. 

Monday came far quicker than Jongin would’ve liked, so he took his time walking to his cubicle, pretending that Chanyeol’s cubicle wasn’t there.

As it turned out, his productivity went up when he didn’t spend a large part of the day staring at Chanyeol, so lunchtime came and went before he even knew it.

Jongin didn’t even bother going to the breakroom, choosing to sit at his desk to eat his sad, soggy sandwich alone. 

Taemin, Sehun, and Wonshik came to look for him at some point, but he made up some lame excuse of being behind on work which Wonshik and Taemin immediately saw through.

For whatever reason, they didn’t call Jongin out on his bullshit and left him alone. 

There was even a point when Jongin was shoving his sandwich bag back into his backpack that he felt a heavy gaze settle on him. He didn’t have to catch the culprit red-handed because he knew it was Chanyeol. 

It felt weird for the tables to be turned. To have Chanyeol looking at him for a change.

He could feel the back of his neck burning, but he ignored it and kept working.

Jongin hadn’t been waiting for Chanyeol to approach him at all, so when it finally happened at the end of the week, Jongin’s fight-or-flight instincts nearly kicked in. 

He struggled to make eye contact with Wonshik or Taemin as Chanyeol kind of cornered him in the elevator, but both of them purposefully avoided his silent cry for help and watched as the elevator doors closed. 

That left Jongin and Chanyeol alone until they got down to the first floor. 

“Hey Jongin,” Jongin gave a weak nod and he tried to look anywhere else but at Chanyeol. It was just too embarrassing. “I was wondering, do you want to maybe watch The Mandalorian with me tomorrow?” The words came out fast and jumbled, but Jongin heard him loud and clear and he finally looked up at Chanyeol. 

Nevermind that he had been avoiding Chanyeol the entire week. 

“Why?” Jongin found himself asking because he really wanted to know. After the disaster that was last weekend, if he were in Chanyeol’s shoes, he would’ve avoided him like the plague.

But here was Chanyeol, extending a weird olive branch and Jongin was hesitant to take it. 

“Because we’re _friends_ right? We hung out last weekend and contrary to whatever you’ve been thinking, I had a good time.” Jongin knew his facial expression probably looked weird, but he didn’t care. 

He wasn’t trying to impress Chanyeol right now. He was trying to gauge if the man had been dropped on the head as a baby and if that was why he was casually suggesting that they hang out again. 

“We’re friends,” Jongin repeated back, just to confirm he’d heard correctly. When he received a affirming nod from Chanyeol, he continued to stare at the man like he was dumb.

Against his better judgment and the mortification that threatened to set in every time he thought back to the previous weekend, Jongin found himself sitting next to Chanyeol on the man’s couch the following evening. 

The Mandalorian played on Chanyeol’s obscenely large TV while Jongin shoved handfuls of Doritos into his mouth to discourage Chanyeol from pursuing conversation. 

It worked until it didn’t, then Jongin took to chugging the beers Chanyeol had sat out for them.

About three episodes in, Chanyeol paused the show and turned to face Jongin on the couch with a serious expression on his face.

“You’re so quiet. Is everything okay?” Jongin immediately nodded and pressed his lips together.

“Everything’s fine, I’m just absorbed in how cute baby Yoda is. The memes don’t do him justice.” He was lying through his teeth, but Chanyeol didn’t notice and gave a nod before resuming the show. 

He still kept shooting Jongin quick glances when he thought Jongin wasn’t paying attention, but he didn’t attempt too much more at conversation.

At some point, Jongin looked at his phone and saw it was almost eleven o’clock, so he stood up before a new episode could begin and muttered about calling it a night. Chanyeol also stood up and nodded, wringing his large hands as Jongin folded the blanket he’d had in his lap.

“Would you be up for making this like a weekly thing? It’s nice having a friend to watch Star Wars stuff with.” 

There was that word again.

_Friend._

Jongin couldn’t stop the baffled look that played across his face, but Chanyeol didn’t seem too perturbed by it. Instead, he just gave Jongin one of his goofy smiles that made him feel like he was drinking a cup of hot chocolate. 

“Sure, Chanyeol. I’ll see you on Monday then,” were the words that found their way out of Jongin’s mouth and Chanyeol’s smile got impossibly wider. 

Jongin had to look away as he slipped on his shoes and made his way out the door because his face was heating up. 

The next week, Jongin didn’t avoid Chanyeol at work. He didn’t fall back into his old habit of peeking at Chanyeol either, though.

His friends seemed happy to have him back at the table and on Friday, Chanyeol caught Jongin as he was walking to the break room and ended up sitting with him. 

“So we can finish the Mandalorian tomorrow and then maybe watch another one of the classics?” Wonshik and Taemin shared a look but didn’t comment on Chanyeol’s words nor his presence. 

Jongin was sure he would hear about it later. At the moment though, he agreed to Chanyeol’s plans with a small nod.

“Saturday, as usual?” Again, Jongin nodded.

Wonshik didn’t even bother to hide his snicker, not that Chanyeol paid him too much attention. Instead, he continued talking about Star Wars with Jongin, mentioning how excited he was to watch it with a friend who actually cared. 

“My other friends think it’s stupid and kind of nerdy, but I don’t care. I like what I like, you know?” 

It was a wonder how Chanyeol could maintain the conversation when Jongin hardly said anything more than a few words, but it wasn’t from lack of interest.

He was just nervous both because he didn’t want to make a fool of himself and because his two best friends were sitting across from him and Chanyeol, taking in every word and facial expression.

Yeah, they were definitely going to roast him and Jongin wasn’t exactly looking forward to it. 

His nerves only got worse when Wonshik and Taemin started engaging Chanyeol in conversation, asking him the questions they asked all of Jongin’s new boyfriends. It was always for his benefit, but that didn’t stop it from being mortifying.

Later that same day, Jongin slammed down his glass of beer and glared at Wonshik and Taemin. 

After work, they went to their usual bar a few stops away from the office.

“Why the hell did you just outright ask him about his last relationship? That was so obvious.” As Jongin spoke, his mind supplied that Chanyeol wasn’t the most observant, so maybe there was a chance he hadn’t even realized what’d happened.

Just like he hadn’t realized that Jongin had been repeatedly coming on to him that first night.

There was still a little hope on that front. 

“I wanted to know.” Taemin’s voice was deadpan and he looked at Jongin like he’d asked a stupid question.

“Why do you care so much anyway? Aren’t you supposed to be friends?” Wonshik butted in, raising an eyebrow and leveling Jongin with an expression that mirrored Taemin’s. 

With both of them looking him at like that, Jongin actually did start to feel stupid. 

Instead of arguing back, Jongin silently drained his glass and ordered something stronger.

Six glasses or shots of ‘something stronger’ later and Jongin’s eyes kept darting over to his phone, hovering over the message app. When Wonshik got up to order himself another drink while Taemin went to the bathroom, Jongin scrambled to pick up his phone and immediately called Chanyeol’s number.

The line barely picked up before Jongin said hello about three times.

“Hey, Jongin. What’s up?” For as anxious as he’d been, Jongin was rendered momentarily speechless when he heard Chanyeol’s voice.

Only when Chanyeol cleared his throat did Jongin’s tongue unstuck from the roof of his mouth and he attempted to talk.

“So, are we still on for tomorrow? I’ll probably be hungover, but I won’t miss it for _anything._ ” Chanyeol let out a small laugh and he hummed, then asked Jongin what he was doing.

“I’m at a bar with Wonshik and Taemin. I probably drank a little too much?” Jongin had meant for the last phrase to come out as a statement, but the alcohol had numbed his tongue and suddenly his inflections were all over the place. 

“A little? Well, as long as you’re having fun and being safe, it doesn’t matter.” Jongin could picture Chanyeol smiling as he held his phone and he let out a hiccup. 

Chanyeol was so fucking sweet. 

“Yes. I’m safe. And I’m having fun. I just, can I ask you something?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Did you really not know that I liked you? I mean, that I still like you?” He might’ve stumbled over his words, but they still came out and that was all that mattered in drunk Jongin’s mind. 

There was silence over the line and Jongin gripped the phone, debating if he should just end the call or throw the phone across the bar. Either way, it would let him escape the hole he’d dug for himself. 

“I kno—know. Can we—uh—talk about this tomorrow? I have a lot to say and I really want to say it in person. Plus, you sound drunk and I want you to remember what I say.” Jongin let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding and nodded like Chanyeol could see him. 

When he realized that the call was not on facetime, he hummed into the phone, “I understand. See you tomorrow then. Sorry about calling you like this.” His heart was hammering in his chest, but even with his hazy mind, he tried to keep his voice level.

“It’s okay. Have a good rest of your night, Jongin.”

Jongin returned the sentiment and ended the phone call. 

“I can’t believe you did that,” Taemin spoke, reminding Jongin that he wasn’t alone anymore. At some point during the call, his friends had come back to the table and probably heard the whole conversation. “Like you really drunk called him…You couldn’t get more Netflix Original if you tried.” 

Ravi laughed and slid Jongin’s phone out of his reach. 

“He didn’t sound mad though, just more entertained than anything else. What a nice guy.” 

Jongin couldn’t join in laughing at his mistake because he felt stupid, so he just stared at the weird tiling on top of the table and followed it until he got dizzy and put his head down. 

“You better finish that. I think it’s time we called it a night. Nini’s had a rough day.” 

Jongin wasn’t fond of how Taemin was talking about him like he wasn’t there, but he was too drunk and too ashamed to raise his head to respond. 

Instead, he let them draw him out of the booth then they helped him walk to the curb where they waited for the taxi Taemin ordered. 

“Before the taxi gets here, do you need to barf? I don’t want a $10 ride to turn into a luxury vehicle ride because you barfed in the backseat.” Jongin shook his head and swayed on his feet, leaning more heavily onto Wonshik. “You better mean it.” 

Not too long after the one-sided conversation ended, the taxi pulled up and they put Jongin in the backseat, then sent Jongin on his way.

Jongin fell asleep and was woken up by the increasingly annoyed voice of the taxi driver. He confirmed that the ride had already been paid for, then climbed out, stumbling into his apartment building.

It took a few times to get the passcode, but once he did, the door swung open and he tumbled inside.

He kicked off his shoes, went to the bathroom, threw all his work clothes on the floor of his bedroom, then climbed into his bed, completely naked.

Unsurprisingly, he dreamed of Chanyeol and when he woke up, it was almost two in the afternoon. That only left a few hours for him to get up and make himself semi-presentable. 

At least from the outside, because he hadn’t trimmed or shaved anything below his neck in weeks and he didn’t exactly feel the pull to. 

A shower, light breakfast, several cups of green tea, and a brisk walk around his neighborhood later, Jongin was somewhat ready to face Chanyeol after his drunken call.

Maybe Chanyeol had been easy on him last night because he pitied him? Or maybe he was going to unload on Jongin the moment they were face to face. 

The possibilities were endless. 

And the anxiety of thinking about those possibilities is what made Jongin down another three cups of tea before he started actually getting dressed.

He settled on some joggers and a t-shirt before shoving his wallet in his pocket and walking out the door. 

While he walked to the bus stop, he debated turning back and just staying home, feigning illness, but part of him knew how shitty that’d be. Chanyeol had sounded kind of serious on the phone when he said he had something to tell Jongin.

The suspense of those words were also one of the driving forces that made him get on the bus, sit still in his seat, and get off at the right stop. He took his time walking to Chanyeol’s building and even more time walking down the large hallway to the other man’s apartment. 

By the time he knocked on the door, it was seven o’clock on the dot. Chanyeol greeted him with his usual smile, though instead of Jongin walking into the living room lights dimmed and the TV on like usual, the TV was off. 

“Before we start watching, I wanted to get this over with. It’s actually been kind of bugging me for a week,” Jongin nodded silently and sat on the couch, waiting for Chanyeol to sit down. “Yes, I know you like me now. I’m sorry I didn’t notice before. That must’ve made you feel bad, so I want to apologize. I should’ve told you this on the first night, but I just didn’t feel like it was the right time.” 

Jongin kept his mouth shut and silently motioned for Chanyeol to keep going. He saw the flush on Chanyeol’s cheeks and his heart started to race. 

“It’s hard for me to feel romantic and sexual feelings for people I don’t really know,” Chanyeol stopped and he looked up at Jongin nervously before continuing, “when you came on to me, I was so surprised. I’m not _not_ attracted to you and that’s why I suggested being friends so quickly. Now, I’m at this place where I do have feelings for you—of various kinds—and I keep wondering if you’ve only stuck around because you still have hopes of sleeping with me or if you genuinely want to be friends,” as he spoke, his gaze lowered to the floor. 

If Jongin hadn’t already felt like shit, he definitely did now and he shifted in his seat, “you don’t have to apologize, Chanyeol. I really should’ve been more upfront about things,” Chanyeol’s gaze trailed from the floor to Jongin’s face and he stared with wide eyes while Jongin continued, “like I could’ve let you know that that was what I had in mind instead of springing it on you. I’m the one that’s sorry.” 

Jongin wrung his hands in his lap and he kept looking at the dark TV screen, wishing it was on so he could have an excuse not to deal with his own emotions. A heavy silence fell between them and it only made Jongin want to reach over and turn on the TV even more. 

“I guess that leaves us in a weird place, huh?” Chanyeol finally spoke up. There was a curious expression on his face and a little light bulb went off in Jongin’s head.

“Wait, you mentioned earlier that you felt things for me. Are some of those things romantic?” He inwardly cursed because his heart shouldn’t have skipped a beat at the potential. 

Chanyeol shrugged and he finally reached for the remote.

“Yeah, I guess so. Would you be interested in dating me still? Or is that kind of off the table now?” His finger hovered over the button and Jongin swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to ignore the blood rushing in his ears.

He might’ve held his breath for a beat or two then let it out, his eyes darting from the blank TV to Chanyeol. 

“Are you seriously asking me that? Because, yes.” The other man had the nerve to look shocked and he dropped the remote, his mouth hanging open.

“Oh my god,” his voice went kind of pitchy and Jongin watched as Chanyeol reclined further into the sofa spreading his limbs. “So are we, like, dating now? Because if so, please don’t sit so far away from me. It’s been driving me insane because I always want you to sit closer, but I never wanted to cross any lines and make you uncomfortable.” 

The words came out quick and Jongin barely understood them before he got up from his seat and sat directly next to Chanyeol so their legs were touching.

It was sweet, really, how Chanyeol blushed and reached out his hand, silently asking Jongin to take it. 

Chanyeol’s hands were so big, they dwarfed Jongin’s.

He liked it. 

Nothing else happened the rest of the night, but Jongin couldn’t stop the butterflies in his stomach.

When the movie finished, Jongin mentioned it was getting late and Chanyeol agreed, finally letting go of Jongin’s hand. He hadn’t looked that thrilled to do so, but he walked Jongin to the door and kissed him on the cheek before he left.

“I know we usually make this a once-a-week thing, but how about we get dinner tomorrow? It’ll be our first official date.” Jongin agreed with an immediate nod, then he stood on the tips of his toes to kiss Chanyeol’s cheek. 

When he leaned back, he saw how red the tips of Chanyeol’s ears were. It made him smile even harder as he walked out of Chanyeol's apartment.

He didn’t have to turn around to know that Chanyeol was watching him walk to the elevator like he usually did, but this time there was a warmth in his chest.

Because it was late, he took a taxi home and the whole time, it felt like he was floating and not sitting in the backseat of a car that smelled vaguely of smoke.

When Jongin got home and sprawled across his bed, he was still on cloud 9 until a message from Taemin reminded him of the dinner plans he’d made earlier in the week.

Just as he was debating how to tell Taemin that he would like to take a raincheck, Taemin called him and Jongin nearly dropped the phone in surprise. His best friend always did have an uncanny sense of timing. 

“Since you took so long to answer, I just wanted to make sure you knew the plans and weren’t still at Chanyeol’s apartment making heart eyes at him.” 

“About that…” Jongin trailed off, trying not to sound too excited. Taemin had calmed him down when his plans with Chanyeol had gone awry the first time, so he imagined the other man wouldn’t be looking forward to doing it again if everything went bad this time as well. 

“What now?” Taemin’s tone was measured, so Jongin took a deep breath and explained everything that happened. “Hm, well that took so much longer than I thought it would. Congratulations Jongin.” 

There was still something cautious about how Taemin said it, but Jongin decided to overlook it. If Taemin honestly had a problem with Chanyeol and him dating, he would eventually bring it up. 

“Thanks.” 

“So lemme go out on a limb and say that you can’t make it to dinner tonight?” Jongin nodded with a hum, “then that’s fine. We’ll catch you next time. Tell Chanyeol I said hi and keep me and Wonshik updated on everything. I don’t want to be blindsided by a wedding or pregnancy.” 

Jongin let out a snort and he promised he would.

Their first date was so cute, it was almost sickening. 

When they met up at the restaurant, Chanyeol had a small bouquet of flowers and was dressed entirely too nicely for their date at the casual pasta place. 

“It’s too late for a first impression, but that didn’t stop me from trying.” Jongin could only grin and he gave Chanyeol an appreciative nod. 

“You do look good, so consider me impressed.” Chanyeol beamed across the table and Jongin had to quell the urge to kiss him because he was so cute. 

“You look good too.” 

Chanyeol’s response was mumbled into his plate, but Jongin heard him clearly and couldn’t stop smiling. 

For the rest of dinner, they talked about Star Wars and work. 

“I think they’re going to give Junmyeon a promotion, but I’m worried about who will take his place. Minseok is a runner-up, but I heard Jongdae is going for it too and those two are really competitive. Do you remember what happened at the company picnic last year?” Jongin asked. 

Chanyeol smirked and nodded, a pensive expression playing across his face.

Someone had suggested a friendly game of soccer, but once Jongdae and Minseok were nominated team captains, the word ‘friendly’ disappeared into thin air. 

By the second quarter, they were at each other’s throats. That was also when the ‘they should just kiss’ thing started going around the office. 

“You know, all jokes aside, I think they’re actually dating now. Which makes me even more concerned about them competing for the job. You think one of them might back down?” Even though no one else around them cared what they were talking about, Chanyeol still leaned forward like he was telling Jongin a secret. 

It was so endearing that Jongin’s heart fluttered for the 1000th time that night.

When their conversation ended up on American football, Jongin kind of zoned out and he found himself thinking about how his attraction to Chanyeol had changed. 

Initially, it was almost all physical with very little interest in who Chanyeol was as a person, but now, Jongin couldn’t get enough. Every quirk, like the one where Chanyeol widened his eyes when he was talking about something serious, was so interesting.

“So, after this, is there something else that you want to do?” That broke Jongin out of his daze and he shrugged, draining the last bit of the wine in his glass. “Anything you want to do is fine. I know there’s a huge arcade around here.” 

Chanyeol got the look of a kid in a candy store, drank the rest of his wine, and walked off to pay the bill. Jongin didn’t even get the chance to offer to pay or split the bill, so he just shoved his wallet back in his pocket and followed behind Chanyeol, feeling shy. 

To make up for dinner, Jongin insisted on paying for their game cards at the arcade, and Chanyeol, begrudgingly, accepted the offer with a muttered, “but I asked _you_ on this date.” 

They played everything from Dance Dance Revolution and Taiko Master, to a Resident Evil shooting game that had them both flinching from the jumpscares and loud sound effects. 

“Let’s avoid the scary games okay? I think that one might keep me up tonight,” Chanyeol mentioned, steering them over to sit down at a clean table. After all the movement and excitement, they were both thirsty, so got some beers while they relaxed.

Jongin was shocked when he looked down at his phone and saw it was already almost 11:30 at night. They both had work in the morning at nine, but Jongin didn’t want the date to end.

He was having so much fun listening to Chanyeol crack jokes and brag about his scores, because truth be told, Jongin kind of sucked at most games. The only game he’d beat Chanyeol in was Dance Dance Revolution because as it turned out, Chanyeol had two left feet.

Chanyeol saw him glance at his phone and looked down at his own, also noticing the time. He seemed just as reluctant to say anything, so Jongin had to be the one to get either of them moving. 

“After these beers, we should probably call it a night. We have work tomorrow.” Chanyeol agreed with a nod and he sipped his beer slow. Jongin followed suit and at 12 AM they walked out the arcade and ordered individual taxis. While they waited, Jongin shoved his hands in his pocket and stared at the sky, trying not to focus on how much he wanted the date to continue.

When he snuck peeks at Chanyeol, he seemed to be doing the same as he dug the toe of his shoe into a pile of gravel. 

“I had a lot of fun tonight. We should do this again,” Chanyeol spoke, finally breaking the silence.

“Yeah, same,” Jongin started, then he got an idea, “how about we eat dinner at that ramen place by work tomorrow?” 

Chanyeol’s eyes sparkled under the neon lights of the arcade sign and he grinned, agreeing immediately. Just as he was about to say something more, Jongin saw his taxi coming and he surged forward, tipping his face up to kiss Chanyeol on the lips. 

Unlike the first awkward kiss they’d shared in Jongin’s apartment, this one was so sweet and Chanyeol clung onto Jongin, holding him close. 

They only pulled apart when the taxi driver honked his horn, shooting Jongin an impatient glare. 

“I’ll see you later,” Jongin said the words quickly and jogged across the street, sliding into the backseat of the waiting car. 

“I’ll look forward to it,” Chanyeol replied back, just a bit too late. The words only came out after Jongin’s taxi pulled away and Chanyeol had to then jog to his own taxi that pulled up right after. 

When he got settled in his seat, he pulled out his phone and texted Jongin a sweet good night text, complete with corny emojis.

Jongin looked down at his phone when it lit up, seeing a message from Chanyeol. 

‘Sleep tight and I’ll see you later today? Good night, Jongin ^^’

Following the message were various emojis of characters preparing for bed and Jongin smiled to himself, holding the phone close to his chest before he responded with a sleeping bear emoji. 

‘Yeah! Night Chanyeol :3’

As he pressed send, Jongin felt warm as another swarm of butterflies kicked up in his chest. 

Taemin and Wonshik had expected phone calls after Jongin got home from his date the previous night, but since he was so late, Jongin just showered, then went to bed. 

When he was waiting for the elevator to get to the office, two pairs of hands landed on his shoulders. Because he was still in a floaty haze, the actions scared the shit out of him.

“Not only did you ditch us for a date, but you also kept all the details to yourself. How unlike you, Jongin,” Taemin huffed, squeezing his shoulder lightly after Jongin had calmed down.

Wonshik nodded in agreement and held out a cup of hot liquid, “and to think that we still look out for you anyway.” When Jongin took a sip, he realized it was a chai latte and smiled in thanks. 

Whenever someone brought their department coffee, Jongin would just look at it and sigh. He hated coffee and no one ever bothered to buy an alternative.

At least he could count on Taemin, Sehun, or Wonshik to bring something for him to drink. 

“The date was great. We ate pasta, then went to this huge arcade and stayed almost all night. I didn’t call because it was almost 1 AM when I finally got to bed,” Jongin gushed, holding his cup closer to him as more people crowded into the elevator. 

“Well then good for you. Chanyeol really does seem like a good fit,” Taemin spoke, his voice quiet. Jongin wasn’t sure if Taemin meant for his words to land as heavily as they did, but Jongin couldn’t stop thinking about it, even as he made his way to the breakroom for lunchtime.

Arguably, Jongin’s past relationships had gone bad for one reason or another and each time Taemin and Wonshik had been there to pick up the pieces. Taemin’s words had been the first time he’d ever said something of that magnitude. 

“Is there anybody in there?” Chanyeol called, waving his—huge—hand in front of Jongin’s face.

“Uh yeah, just thinking about all the work I have to do by next week.” It wasn’t a lie, per se, but Jongin wasn’t telling the truth and it made his stomach turn a little. Lying to Chanyeol was starting to make him feel horrible and it wasn’t something he wanted to make a habit.

“Yeah… I can’t believe we have to look over ten years worth of documents in a week. Like what kind of deadline is that?” Junmyeon passed by them and he gave them a sheepish look before hurrying to a table in the corner of the room with the other group leaders.

Even Junmyeon felt bad and would probably run himself ragged trying to meet the deadline. It wouldn’t be the first time and it probably wouldn’t be the last either. 

Chanyeol looked a little guilty when he saw Junmyeon slink into his seat and distractedly pick at the sandwich in front of him. The crunch was already setting in on the man and Jongin felt sorry for him as well. 

Wonshik, Sehun, and Taemin were sitting at the usual table, talking about the deadlines that fell in their own respective departments. 

“They want us to look over almost a decade worth of financial records. Even if Jinri and my team stayed late every day, I’m not sure we can do it.” Taemin actually looked stressed for once and suddenly Jongin’s mind shifted from thinking about Chanyeol and how amazing he was to the looming deadline.

The gloomy mood that saturated the break room spoke volumes on how everyone else’s minds were thinking about the same thing.

Taemin, Wonshik, and Sehun didn’t even bother poking fun at Jongin and Chanyeol. Instead, the conversation stayed neutral and everyone ate their food with somber expressions. 

The week was going to be a long one. 

“He asked me to move in. He really asked me to move in right after he announced we’d finished the project,” Sehun mumbled, staring blankly as he leaned on Jongin’s cubicle wall. It made Jongin look up from shutting down his computer and he turned in his chair. 

“That’s great! Are you going to do it?” Instead of answering, Sehun just stared at Jongin and let out another sigh. If it had been one of Chanyeol’s anime shows he’d been trying to get Jongin hooked on, Sehun’s soul would have attempted to escape from his mouth. 

“I haven’t decided. He told me to think about it over the weekend, but I kind of want to give him an answer tomorrow night on our date.” Sehun was still leaning on the wall like a wilted flower and Jongin got up, slinging his bag onto his back. 

“I hate to sound corny but follow your heart, Hun. We both know you’ve thought of Junmyeon as end game since you started interning here.” Sehun’s eyebrows twitched at that and let out a humorless chuckle. 

“You’re right. I’ve been walking around, going crazy and the answer was so simple. I’m so stupid.” Jongin gave him a pat on the back and grabbed his phone, walking out of his work area with Sehun following after him. 

“You want to go get some drinks tonight? We deserve it after the week we’ve had.” Jongin shook his head and waited on the side of the elevator. 

“Can’t. Chanyeol and I are going to the movies after we both get changed. Apparently, Chanyeol is also a big Marvel fan and you know how much I like a good action movie.” Sehun pushed at Jongin’s shoulder with tsk, then smiled and got in the nearly packed elevator.

“Ooh, is that why you also turned us down too?” Taemin asked, coming up behind Jongin with a few of his team members behind him. Jongin flushed and he shrugged, a smile on his face. 

“I thought in-office romances were frowned upon?” Soojung wondered aloud. It earned her a glare from Taemin and she stopped talking. 

“Contrary to popular belief, it is not,” Jinki, Taemin’s team leader, spoke up. The man hardly ever interjected when it wasn’t about work, so Jongin was surprised he said something. 

He became less surprised when he saw the man giving Jonghyun, another member of Taemin’s team, soft eyes. 

Hm.

“Well as much as we’d like to continue to talk about the office dating policy, we have a movie to catch in two hours and we have to go get changed,” Chanyeol added, putting his hands on either of Jongin’s shoulders. His mouth was so close to Jongin’s ear when he said it that the warm air from his mouth made him shiver. 

That’s how Jongin knew it’d been a long time since he’d gotten any because just warm air made him want to jump out his skin. 

Jongin’s hypersensitivity aside, everyone laughed at Chanyeol and they all crowded into the elevator. 

“Text me when you’re leaving your house,” Chanyeol reminded Jongin before Jongin’s bus came. 

The busy week had been an un-welcomed reprieve from all the pounding his heart was doing, but as Chanyeol waved at Jongin as the bus pulled away, it seemed like that break was over. Jongin was back to feeling like a teenager with a new crush and it kind of made him want to puke.

If heart eyes were a real thing, he’d definitely have them.

Just as Chanyeol asked, Jongin texted him the moment he was showered, dressed, and leaving his apartment. Immediately, he got a message back, saying that Chanyeol was already getting on the bus and that he would be at Jongin’s stop in a few minutes.

‘Good timing’ Jongin text back, barely having time to look at his phone before the bus Chanyeol mentioned pulled up.

Chanyeol was sitting alone towards the back of the bus and when he caught a glimpse of Jongin, he scooted over and smiled. His knees were bouncing, even when Jongin sat down.

Just like that, his heart was lacing up its running shoes.

The movie was pretty good, though Jongin couldn’t concentrate about halfway through when Chanyeol reached over the popcorn to hold his hand. 

It wasn’t too tight or too warm or anything. Jongin was just stuck in his own head and could barely pry himself out of it to comprehend the finer details of the movie. 

“I think he should’ve just given up trying to live like a normal person. Assuming the world of the movie has superheroes like Superman, Batman, and Spiderman, the character should’ve known how hard it’d be. The double life would drive me insane.” Luckily for Jongin, Chanyeol seemed pretty focused on the part of the movie he’d actually watched, so he could actively discuss it.

“Yeah, I mean, his girlfriend seemed like she would be totally fine with it. She did have a crush on Astroman or whatever his name was. What would be cooler than your actual boyfriend being a superhero?” Chanyeol nodded and chucked his drink into the trash as they walked out of the theater. 

“Want to grab dinner here or go somewhere else?” 

Jongin shrugged and leaned closer into Chanyeol, “anything you want to do. Just hanging out with you is fine with me.” 

If Jongin thought for one second that the affection he had for Chanyeol was one-sided, then that thought was snuffed out. After Jongin responded, Chanyeol looked at him with the biggest and shiniest eyes he’d ever seen. 

It should’ve been overwhelming, but it wasn’t and Jongin responded with a bright smile of his own, showing that he meant every word of it. 

Several emotions passed over Chanyeol’s face, but he didn’t comment on it. Jongin just kept walking beside him, bumping their shoulders together every few steps.

“There’s this place that has really good burgers. People on Instagram have been posting about it for weeks. It’s styled like a fifties American diner, so we can take cute pictures.” It felt good to take charge of things for once and Jongin watched Chanyeol nod and finally return his earlier smile. 

The food ended up being way better than Jongin expected and he ate so much, he almost regretted wearing a top that lifted when he raised his arms. 

Almost, because every time he leaned over or reached something, he noticed how Chanyeol’s eyes would dart to the exposed strip of skin on his stomach. 

Jongin decided to poke fun at Chanyeol and he leaned over. Even if he couldn’t see Chanyeol, he could feel the heat of his gaze and it made his stomach flip. When he leaned up quickly, he caught Chanyeol red-handed and a flush immediately colored his face and ears.

A quiet ‘sorry’ slipped from Chanyeol’s mouth and he stared at the remaining few fries on his plate.

Instead of laughing like Jongin thought he would, he felt bad. So, he reached across the table and held one of Chanyeol’s hands with both of his own hands. 

“It’s okay,” Jongin swallowed hard, pausing out of embarrassment, “I, uh, don’t mind. I kind of like it.” 

That stunned Chanyeol into silence and the same look Chanyeol had given him at the movie theater crossed his face once more. Though this time, Chanyeol’s eyes and face lit up

Jongin was definitely going to die from the constant spikes in his heart rate.

“How about we go for a walk in the park close to here? Some guys from the accounting department were talking about seeing the last of the Spring flowers bloom and you remind me a lot of flowers.” 

His words were so sweet and Jongin was certain Chanyeol was out to end him. He might as well give his sister’s kids all his stuffed bears because Chanyeol was killing him with cuteness.

Jongin was definitely more of a touchy person in relationships and Chanyeol seemed to embrace it with open arms. Whenever they would bump shoulders, Chanyeol would turn and grin at him. When their hands grazed, Chanyeol would grab at one of his fingers and hold it for a few seconds before letting go.

It was driving him crazy in the best and sweetest way possible.

And sweetly was how the first two months of their romantic relationship passed. 

Some mornings, Jongin walked into his cubicle and saw breakfast, a chai latte, and a handwritten note waiting for him on his desk. Other days, there was something small, like a single flower or small bear to add to his collection.

Jongin tried to return the favor on several occasions like buy an entire Iron Man-themed stationery set and hide it in one of Chanyeol’s drawers. He also bought his favorite candy—Twizzlers—and put a cute post-it note on it. Whenever Sehun caught him, he’d make a gagging noise and walk away, shaking his head.

The gagging noises became commonplace whenever Chanyeol and Jongin got too lovey-dovey during lunchtime or a coffee break, but they both took it in stride. 

“I know we have plans for Saturday, but how about you just spend the night tomorrow? That way we can spend the whole day together?” Jongin stopped sipping his lukewarm tea and stared at Chanyeol, trying to figure out if he should read between the lines or not.

Was Chanyeol asking for a sleepover or a _sleepover_? 

Instead of assuming as he had at the start of their platonic relationship, Jongin decided to just ask. Then, he wouldn’t come across as an ass.

Again.

“Spend the night?” Chanyeol had been talking about details of their Saturday plans but stopped mid-sentence. 

His cheeks went pink and he nodded, “yeah. Spend the night.” 

There. There was no mistaking or misunderstanding the situation this time. 

“Spend the night, right,” Jongin repeated again, just to be sure before his grip on the tiny paper cup tightened and some of the tea sloshed onto the floor.

Chanyeol stared at the droplets of tea, then studied Jongin’s facial expression. It didn’t take him long to figure out that Jongin’s brain was momentarily fried, so he got some paper towels and cleaned up the mess. 

The entire time, Jongin remained still with a blank look on his face. 

There were a million things running through his mind, but Jongin could only think about being alone with Chanyeol. In bed. Together. At night. Next to each other. 

“Jongin if you don’t blink in the next few seconds, I’m going to call the hospital,” Chanyeol mentioned, waving his hand in front of Jongin’s face.

To stave off an unnecessary ambulance ride and usage of his vacation time, Jongin blinked a few times and gave a curt nod.

“Spend the night, got it.” Chanyeol looked like he wanted to talk more, but Junmyeon passed by the break room with raised eyebrows. It was his way of chiding the men to get back to work and it made them scurry back to their respective cubicles. 

“He wants you to spend the night? Oh yeah, whatever you assume is going to happen, probably will,” Taemin sighed, popping another chip in his mouth as he lay across Jongin’s couch. 

After work, Jongin called an emergency meeting with his friends. Even Sehun and Junmyeon showed up, bringing gifts of wine and a small charcuterie plate.

Jongin loved when Sehun brought Junmyeon around. For the gifts.

It made it feel less weird to have his boss sitting in his living room, in casual clothes, and cuddled up with Sehun. 

“You mentioned before that Chanyeol said he wasn’t into rushing intimacy, so this is definitely his way of initiating something.

See, that was another thing about having Junmyeon around. He was really insightful and much more gentle with his advice than Wonshik and Sehun. Taemin’s advice bordered on being crass and downright inappropriate in most situations, yet somehow worked for him whenever he followed his own advice.

Jongin still wasn’t sure how that worked, but it definitely had something to do with the people Taemin chose to date.

“Do you think he knows how open you are, _sexually_?” Taemin wondered out loud. Jongin stared at Taemin, scandalized, yet unsurprised. 

All the gifts in the world wouldn’t make Junmyeon knowing about Jongin’s sex life better or any less embarrising.

Jongin had first date jitters the whole day at work. Even when Chanyeol greeted him with a quick peck when there weren’t any people around, Jongin didn’t react like he usually did. He was too busy thinking about how big Chanyeol’s hands felt resting on his hips and how much he towered over him.

“Did you bring your bag with you?” Jongin hated how quickly he noticed that Chanyeol’s voice dropped an octave or two as he spoke. 

He also hated how badly he wanted to act on everything that Chanyeol was hinting toward. 

“Yeah, I-I’m looking forward to it.” Chanyeol let him go when some people from the tech department passed and they stood off to the side. When the hallway was clear again, Chanyeol reached for Jongin’s hand and squeezed lightly. 

“I’m looking forward to it too. I’ve been for a while now.” That was the last nail in Jongin’s coffin and he swallowed hard, trying to think about something un-sexy, like dirty socks or how his favorite weight bench at the gym was always wet with someone else’s sweat. He didn’t need to deal with a persistent hard on the entire day, just because his imagination was entirely too vivid.

From that moment on, Jongin’s concentration was shot and he barely got anything done work-wise. He didn’t dare sneak peeks at Chanyeol’s cubicle because that was the last thing he needed. 

Even lunch was a struggle because his mind kept wandering back to what could happen later that night.

Would Chanyeol try to accost him as soon as they were in his apartment? Would he draw things out and tease Jongin with innocent touches, then initiate something once night fell? 

There were literally so many possibilities and Jongin’s mind couldn’t settle on which one was best, so it just cycled through every single one like an advanced view master. 

People kept trying to draw him into conversation, but eventually, Chanyeol, Taemin, Wonshik, and Sehun got tired of his one-word answers. Or at least that’s what it seemed like because they stopped engaging him.

Sehun, Taemin, and Wonshik kept sending each other knowing glances while Chanyeol looked on, clueless. He probably thought Jongin was stuck in his own head again and decided to let him be. 

Either way, Jongin just ate his sandwich with a listless expression and kind of floated through the rest of lunch and the remainder of the day.

When it was time to clock out and go home, the butterflies that had eventually settled, woke back up. Chanyeol was waiting for him outside his cubicle and they walked to the elevator together.

They passed Taemin and when Chanyeol turned his head, Taemin wiggled his eyebrows and poked out his tongue, making obscene gestures at Jongin. 

He, of course, immediately stopped when Chanyeol noticed Jongin staring with a horrified look on his face and looked in Taemin’s direction again.

Chanyeol raised his eyebrow in question but Jongin waved it off, making a sour face at Taemin before they stepped into the waiting elevator. 

“Have fun!” Taemin called after them, giving a thumbs up.

While it seemed antagonizing, it was how Taemin showed his support. Jongin had long since learned not to let the other man get under his skin.

The bus ride to Chanyeol’s apartment was uneventful sans for how Jongin’s nerves finally reached a crescendo halfway there and he went lax in his seat.

He’d mentally gone through every possible situation and there was logically nothing left to fear.

But with that out the way, Jongin began to notice how nervous Chanyeol was getting. With only a stop left until theirs, the leg pressed against Jongin’s bounced repeatedly and he saw how tight Chanyeol’s jaw was set as he looked over something on his phone screen. 

“You okay?” It was funny really, Jongin asking something like that. He hadn’t been ‘okay’ all day and now he was trying to calm down Chanyeol. 

Chanyeol nodded and Jongin reached for and gave Chanyeol’s hand a squeeze. 

There was something comforting in the fact that they were both a mess and it put Jongin at ease. Now that he wasn’t panicking, he tried to keep Chanyeol calm and pulled the taller man off the bus when their stop finally came.

The walk from the bus stop to Chanyeol’s apartment was brief, but Jongin swore Chanyeol tripped over his own feet at least three or four times. It also took him a few tries before he punched in the right code to unlock his door. 

By the time they made it into the house, Chanyeol’s cheeks were colored in mortification but he didn’t mention it further, just walked to his bedroom and mentioned that he was going to take a shower.

Like the good boyfriend that Jongin liked to think he was, he left Chanyeol to his own devices and waited patiently for him to finish.

He wasn’t sure if he should turn on the TV and watch something or just scroll through his social media accounts until Chanyeol finished. He knew he should probably start thinking about dinner as well because Chanyeol asked about it earlier.

After more deliberation, he decided to do all three. He turned on the TV and flipped until he found a drama he’d been vaguely interested in watching. Then, he checked the few notifications on his phone before ordering their usual take-out order from the nearby Thai place. 

The moment he put his phone down, Chanyeol walked out of his bathroom in gray sweatpants and a thin t-shirt that looked like it’d seen better days. The graphic of a giraffe was barely visible and most of the lettering had flaked off. 

“The bathroom’s all yours,” Chanyeol said, motioning toward the room. Jongin grabbed his bag and headed inside.

“If I don’t finish before the food gets here, take my card and pay for it please,” Jongin mentioned before he closed the door behind him. He knew Chanyeol would probably ignore him and pay for it, but Jongin thought he’d give it a try anyway.

Just as he thought, his card was left untouched and Chanyeol had gotten plates out of the kitchen. He looked considerably less stressed and there was a smile on his face when he took in Jongin’s clothes. 

A few times, Chanyeol had expressed how cute he thought Jongin’s fascination with collecting bear paraphernalia was. So, Jongin decided to wear his favorite pajama set that consisted of pants embossed with cartoon bears and a matching shirt.

“So should we just watch something random or start watching the stuff for tomorrow?” Jongin thought about it for a few moments before deciding. “Something random, I don’t feel like paying too much attention right now.” 

Maybe it was just Jongin’s imagination, but he swore he saw Chanyeol’s Adam's apple bob hard in his throat as he swallowed. He hadn’t meant it like that but considering the possibilities that the night could bring, he also didn’t rescind his statement.

Jongin just ate his food and pretended not to see the looks Chanyeol kept shooting him. 

Pretended that the reason his face was heating up was because of the spice in his food. 

Chanyeol cleaned up the empty containers and Jongin picked up the glass plates, bringing them to the sink.

There were a few dishes, so he decided to wash everything quickly while Chanyeol seemed to be wrestling with a plastic bag tangled with something in the cabinet. He hadn’t noticed the rustling stopped by the time he washed the last glass and he turned, catching Chanyeol staring right at him.

“You didn’t have to…” Chanyeol spoke quietly, gesturing to the—now empty—sink. Nervous laughter rumbled from Jongin’s throat and he shrugged. “Kinda too late for that right?”

He dried off his hands with a paper towel and threw it in the general trash bag Chanyeol had set out. 

“What do you say we watch a comedy for once?” Chanyeol gave a nod and turned off the kitchen light, stepping back into the living room first. 

Jongin took extra care of sitting closer than he usually did and he _heard_ Chanyeol’s sharp intake of breath when their thighs pressed together. Even through Chanyeol’s sweatpants, he could still feel the warmth radiating off the other man.

Near the beginning of the movie, Chanyeol spread a blanket over their laps and not-so-discreetly draped his long arm over Jongin’s back.

Instantly, Jongin’s stomach butterflies resumed their residence and he stopped concentrating on the movie. He could only smell the minty scent of Chanyeol’s body wash and think about how warm he was. The sudden romantic turn the movie took also didn’t help with anything. 

When he turned his head to see if Chanyeol was watching, he saw that he was being stared at. Or rather, Chanyeol was staring at a lower part of his face. 

Was there something on his face?

It took a second but then it finally dawned on him. Chanyeol was staring at his mouth. His lips.

He didn’t even wait for Chanyeol to make any further moves. He just leaned in and kissed Chanyeol, reaching to hold his face. 

The kiss was unlike any that they’d shared previously. It was slow and languid, yet Chanyeol kept surging forward, going for more. Like he was trying to put all of the anxious energy and everything he’d been feeling all day—all week, maybe longer—into words.

The movie went forgotten as Chanyeol leaned more on Jongin until he was almost on top of him, still kissing him like his life depended on it. 

Jongin’s nerves, blood, hell, his entire body, sang with relief and joy as Chanyeol’s arms moved to circle his waist.

When they finally pulled apart and Chanyeol looked down at him, Jongin just stared back, chest heaving and his lips burning. He was hard and he couldn’t even hear the music in the credits of the movie over the blood rushing in his ears.

He couldn’t see himself, but if he looked even a fraction of fucked as Chanyeol then they both looked a sight. 

“Is this oh-okay?” Chanyeol breathed out, his nostrils flaring. His eyes were wide and his chestnut hair was tousled from Jongin running his fingers through it.

“Y-yeah, more than okay,” Jongin made a mental note to congratulate himself for not stumbling over his words for once. 

Chanyeol stared at him for a long few seconds before he leaned back up, turned off the TV and stood up, clearing his throat. With him standing, the tent in pants was hard to miss and Jongin openly stared at it.

Actually, he was so busy staring that he belatedly realized Chanyeol was holding his hand out to pull him up from the couch. With an embarrassed cough, Jongin took it and rose to his feet, letting Chanyeol lead him into the bedroom.

Gone were the two bumbling idiots they turned into when they were together. Instead, they moved like a well-oiled machine once they got into the bedroom.

Chanyeol lowered Jongin onto the bed and kissed him again, stealing his breath and licking his way back into his mouth. More than once, their teeth knocked together and he might’ve accidentally bit Chanyeol’s lip, but they didn’t stop. 

With their mouths busy, Chanyeol’s hands slipped under Jongin’s shirt and rubbed down his stomach, making noises of approval in their kiss. His fingers circled and pinched at Jongin’s nipples, making his back arch and his breath hitch. 

Jongin’s skin felt like there were fire ants marching just beneath the surface in all the places Chanyeol touched. He couldn’t stop moaning into Chanyeol’s mouth, especially when one of Chanyeol’s hands palmed at his dick.

That same hand slipped past the waistband of his pants and Chanyeol pulled away, giving Jongin an amused look because he wasn’t wearing underwear

He didn’t say anything though. He just gave Jongin a grin and started kissing his way down Jongin’s neck, sucking and nipping every few kisses. There would probably be a trail of marks going down his neck in the morning, but rather than feeling annoyed like Jongin usually did, his dick throbbed in response. 

When Chanyeol pulled away to take off his shirt, Jongin watched with dark eyes, taking in the carefully sculpted muscles of his stomach. There were thick veins that trailed down into Chanyeol’s sweat pants and it made Jongin’s mouth water.

He probably wouldn’t get a chance to have Chanyeol in his mouth that night, but he knew they’d get around to it. He’d already felt the size of the bulge against his leg and he knew his work would be cut out for him. 

A mouthful, he would say. 

His curious hands tugged at the waistband of the pants and Chaneyol pulled them down, along with his underwear. In that second, Jongin could see all of Chanyeol and clenched in anticipation. 

He was glad that his pants were still on because he wasn’t sure if he wanted Chanyeol to see how desperate he was for him. 

That thought, however, was short-lived because Chanyeol reached down and started to tug at the hem of his shirt, then at the waistband of his pants. 

Obediently, he lifted his arms, and Chanyeol tugged off his shirt and threw it aside with his pants following soon after.

Just like that, he was completely naked underneath an equally naked Chanyeol, and whatever restraint and inhibitions he had were gone in an instant.

Jongin reached up and pulled Chanyeol back on top of him so that their bare chests were touching. The kiss they shared was chaste and sweet, despite the fact that Jongin pushed up his hips to grind their cocks together. 

The hiss Chanyeol let loose in Jongin’s mouth was delicious and he ate it like the sweetest candy he’d ever tasted. Then, he did it again and again until one of Chanyeol’s hands pressed his hip into the bed.

“Slow down, baby.” His voice went down several octaves and Jongin’s dick twitched, smearing a thin stripe of precome across his lower stomach. The combination of Chanyeol’s big hands on his body and his voice dripping like honey, had Jongin going crazy. He tried to jerk his hips up again, but Chanyeol used more force to hold him down and he let out a disappointed whine.

It wasn’t clear if Chanyeol just wanted Jongin to be patient or if he was too sensitive and already close to coming. It didn’t matter much though because Jongin finally heeded Chanyeol’s words and kept still as best he could. 

The kissing was constant and every time Chanyeol drew him in for another, Jongin felt his mind wander and it made it easier to relax into the soft sheets beneath him. 

That peace disappeared when Chanyeol started moving his kisses downward again, laving and biting lightly at Jongin’s nipples before going low, low, lower, until he was breathing hot breaths on the tip of Jongin’s dick. 

The head was a fierce red and the tip shone with precome, begging for the attention that Chanyeol was set on giving. 

The initial lick made Jongin arch his back off the bed with a shout and immediately more heat engulfed him. He’d definitely caught Chanyeol by surprise, but he didn’t falter. Instead, he just kept going, now holding down both of Jongin’s hips with his hands. 

Having Jongin last longer than a few minutes wasn’t part of Chanyeol’s plan, Jongin realized, because Chanyeol switched between licking, stroking, and taking him deeper into his mouth. When his long tongue swiped along the underside of the head, Jongin’s eyes rolled back and he gripped the sheets in his hand.

He probably managed to pull them off the mattress but that was far from his mind as Chanyeol hollowed his cheeks and continued to work him over. The moment he figured out that thumbing the slit and adding pressure to the head made Jongin thrash and let out broken sobs, he kept doing it. 

Jongin’s orgasm was so close it felt like he was standing at the edge of a cliff, but Chanyeol refused to let him fall. 

“Chanyeol, ple-please-please,” he begged, opening his eyes to see Chanyeol staring up at him, his hand moving in slow strokes while his thumb smeared the pre-come all over the head of Jongin’s cock. His lips were spit slicked and red, probably from the sucking and their intense make-out sessions.

It was all Jongin could focus on, watching as the same tongue that was wrapped around his dick a few moments ago, darted out to further dampen Chanyeol’s lips.

His heart was beating in his throat, threatening to escape from his mouth each time he opened it to pant and beg.

Warm fingers fondled at his balls and stroked at his taint, pressing softly on his hole. Jongin held his breath, hoping Chanyeol would just sink a finger inside of him to remedy the emptiness he was feeling.

The opposite happened when Chanyeol pulled his hand away, only for it to return a few moments later, slicker and cooler than before. Jongin wasn’t sure when or where’d Chanyeol had gotten lube, but he was ecstatic.

Steadily, the finger circled around his entrance, teasing and prodding until Jongin arched his back, keening as Chanyeol’s finger slipped deeper into him. 

He was so so so greedy and he wanted more, but Chanyeol seemed more than content to stroke him slowly and twist that single finger inside of him. 

“You’re so pretty like this, Nini.” 

Jongin’s brain was already mush, but Chanyeol using _that_ name at a time like this ensured it would remain that way.

Titering over the edge of coming for so long turned Jongin’s predictive reasoning into shit, so when Chanyeol pushed another finger inside and crooked them in the direction of his prostate, he nearly screamed. The hand on his cock stopped moving and instead, Chanyeol just held it, admiring how more pre-come oozed from the tip as he abused Jongin’s prostate. 

“Shh, let me take care of you,” Chanyeol whispered, pumping his fingers quickly. 

The unspoken implications of Chanyeol’s words and his thick fingers—now three— pressing into his prostate are what finally took him over the edge and he came with a strained, yet relieved cry.

That cry quickly turned pained as Chanyeol stroked him using his own come as lube while he squeezed the head with a tight fist, milking a few more pearly drops from him. When Chanyeol finally let him go, Jongin let out a decidedly unsexy wheeze. 

“I can’t believe you’re trying to kill me.” Chanyeol only wiped his hands with some tissues, then leaned forward to wipe the mess on Jongin’s stomach. 

“I’d never dream of it, especially now that I’ve seen how cute you look when you come.” 

The sincerity of his words made Jongin blush and he turned his face, burying it in the nearest pillow. He wasn’t quite in the position to move his body yet, so he just did his best and took several inhales, getting strong whiffs of Chanyeol’s shampoo. 

Jongin would’ve continued to be coy, but he remembered that Chanyeol still hadn’t gotten off yet, so he turned away from the pillow and sat up slowly, eyeing Chanyeol.

His dick bobbed heavily between his legs, almost purple, but he was looking at Jongin with a soft, fond expression. 

There was just so much _love_ in his eyes, it made Jongin’s throat feel tight. Even if he still felt boneless, he sat up and draped his arms over Chanyeol’s shoulders. 

“Your turn now.”

Chanyeol went onto his back easily and Jongin situated himself, sitting so Chanyeol’s dick was digging into the cleft of his ass. 

Even from just that, Chanyeol’s brow was already furrowed and he was looking up at Jongin with an unreadable expression. 

Jongin supposedly had taken the lead of things, but it didn’t feel that way as Chanyeol put his hands on Jongin’s hips and thrust against him. He kept leaning forward to burying his head in Jongin’s chest, sneaking in a few nips here or there.

He’d figured it out earlier when they’d started, but Chanyeol was particularly sensitive to them just rubbing against each other. So, he attempted to coax an orgasm out of him by rutting against him in his lap. 

The sensation was strange at first—for him—but the longer he kept at it, the more he could feel his dick filling up in interest.

It felt a little embarrassing to be ready to go so quickly after Chanyeol had gotten him off, but Chanyeol just grinned up at him and started thumbing at Jongin’s cock again.

“You want me to put it in?” 

Yes, Jongin wanted that so badly, but he also wanted to treat Chanyeol after the orgasm he’d given him. “If you want it, tell me baby,” Chanyeol continued.

There was that nickname again and just like before, it made Jongin’s insides feel like warm putty. 

It was a few seconds before Jongin finally broke down and gave a murmured ‘yes.’ There was no sense in him being coy now.

Before Chanyeol slicked himself with lube, he reached up and palmed Jongin’s ass, grinning as Jongin squirmed in his lap and pushed back against his dick again, impatient.

Finally, Chanyeol held himself steady and Jongin moved his hips back, opening his mouth in a breathless moan as Chanyeol slid inside him. He’d used just enough lube to ensure that the drag wasn’t uncomfortable, yet there was still a slight pull of friction that made goosebumps rise on his back.

Jongin made sure he wasn't too caught up in his own feelings to watch the look on Chanyeol’s reaction when he finally bottomed out.

There were deep lines between his eyebrows, his mouth was open and his big eyes were watery. His entire body had gone tense when Jongin first pushed back and remained so until Jongin was situated and started to move his hips. Now, Jongin was hard, leaking and smearing translucent liquid on his thigh and Chanyeol’s lower stomach.

He didn’t pay it any mind and worked on setting a decent pace. It’d been a while since he’d last done this and he hoped his knees didn’t pop too loudly.

Jongin shouldn't have been too surprised when Chanyeol touched his hip and asked—in so many words—if they could switch to missionary. 

Chanyeol's sexual taste seemed far from boring, but Jongin figured he would be sentimental, just like he was outside the bedroom.

There was just something unnervingly sexy about how intense Chanyeol looked at him as he established his own pace, giving Jongin deep, slow, and measured thrusts. He couldn't even moan or make much noise because Chanyeol kept bending down to kiss him and suck on his tongue. 

In his heart of hearts, Jongin wanted Chanyeol to absolutely wreck him. Just jackhammer into him until he forgot his name and rendered the sheets unusable, but Chanyeol seemed to be intent on making Jongin come.

Emotionally. And physically. 

Jongin was getting the dicking of his life, so he couldn't even think deeply about how Chanyeol was giving him emotional orgasms one after the other. The eye contact, handholding, soft kisses, and gentle breathing were all a part of it.

"You're so good for me," Chanyeol spoke quietly, right in Jongin's ear. He continued on, talking about how _good_ Jongin felt around him and how much he _loved_ having Jongin like this. It did quite the number on Jongin's mind and his entire body thrummed with his second orgasm of the night right underneath the surface. 

When Jongin finally could talk, the only thing he sobbed was for Chanyeol to hurry up and come.

Even if Chanyeol was on top of him, it really felt like Jongin was in control for that instant and he wrapped his legs around Chanyeol's waist. He raised his hips to meet each of Chanyeol's thrusts and before long, Chanyeol squeezed at his hands and his breathing picked up. 

It took a few thrusts and Jongin clenching around Chanyeol several times before the other man finally came, Jongin's name on his lips as he spilled inside of him. He buried his head in Jongin's neck and Jongin let go of Chanyeol's hands to hold him, completely ignoring how hard he still was. 

When Chanyeol finally leaned up and looked down at Jongin’s dick, he gave an embarrassed look, "you didn't...hold on." He sunk down and reached for the lube, squirting some in his hand and closed his fist around Jongin's dick. 

It was tight just like Jongin liked and he bit his bottom lip, looking down and watching as Chanyeol stroked him quickly. Slick noises were soon joined by Jongin's moans when Chanyeol slipped two fingers back into him.

He used the remnants of his own come to ease the slide and crooked them right where Jongin's prostate was. It made Jongin's thighs tremble and he worked his hips into Chanyeol's fist, 

"Close," Jongin breathed out, scrunching up his face in concentration as he let Chanyeol take him apart with his hands. 

As promised, a few lines of white spilled over Chanyeol's face and one even striped his cheek. That didn't deter him and he continued to stroke until Jongin let out a few high pitched whines, trying to run away from the stimulation.

This time he let Jongin go and wiped his hand on the edge of the sheet before leaning over for a tissue to clean his face. 

Jongin could only watch as he tried, and failed, to wipe the spunk from his face. 

Jongin had to reach over and wipe it for him, giving a tired smile because Chanyeol was so damn cute. Even when he had Jongin's come on his face.

Especially when he had Jongin's come on his face.

They should've gotten up and showered, but Jongin was feeling lethargic. He convinced Chanyeol to lay in the bed with him and before either of them noticed, they drifted off to sleep. 

When they woke up again, the sun had gone down and Chanyeol's room was pitch black. 

"How about that shower now?" Jongin croaked. His voice was still heavy with sleep and Chanyeol laughed before agreeing. 

Jongin tried to climb out of the bed, but his legs continued their nap, so Chanyeol had to help him awkwardly and hilariously limp to the bathroom. He sat on the toilet seat and watched as Chanyeol, in all his naked glory, warmed up the water then proceeded to douse Jongin in it. 

He very narrowly missed wetting Jongin's entire face and he yelped out an apology. He really did feel bad about it, but Jongin waved it off, and halfway through their shower, his legs woke up.

"There's still some Thai left over if you're hungry again. You can warm it up while I change the sheets, then we can veg around in bed?" 

That sounded perfect and Jongin told him, standing on his tippy toes to give Chanyeol a kiss. 

The simple action made Chanyeol turn pink from the tips of his ears down to his neck. In a futile effort to hide how flustered he was, Chanyeol disappeared into the bedroom and came back a few moments later wearing new gray sweatpants with extra pants and a shirt for Jongin.

Accepting the shirt, Jongin slipped it on and sighed when the smell of Chanyeol's detergent hit him. Not only was the shirt the perfect length, hitting just past his thighs, but it also made him feel like Chanyeol had him wrapped in a hug. Chanyeol disappeared back into the bedroom and just as the food finished warming in the microwave, he came out holding the soiled sheets. 

Even from where Jongin was standing, he could see how debauched they were and he looked away, knowing it was mostly his fault. 

Chanyeol stepped past him with a smile and kissed his cheek, "I'll wash as many sheets as needed to have you like that again." The way his voice dipped made Jongin's stomach drop into his ass and he muttered curses to himself before he found a small food tray to bring into the bedroom.

They attempted to watch a drama about an aspiring screenwriter, but one of the romantic scenes inspired them to start round three. Completely unlike the previous two, things held a steady pace and they both came at the same time. Chanyeol also remembered to pull out and come onto Jongin's stomach to spare the sheets and Jongin from having to take yet another shower. 

Rewinding back to the part where they'd gotten distracted had been embarrassing, but Jongin loved every second of it and he could tell Chanyeol did too. 

Their plans for Saturday went forgotten and they managed to roll out of bed at three o'clock. 

Gone were the thoughts of a lunchtime picnic, instead they settled for getting dressed and going to a nearby shop to get some bubble tea. Then, they wound up at a small restaurant, stuffing their faces full of kimchi jjigae and kimbap. 

Jongin was tempted to stay the night again but decided against it at the last minute. Chanyeol looked a little sad, but perked back up when Jongin promised to call him when he got home. 

The kiss they shared in the doorway of Chanyeol's apartment was like something out of a movie or drama. Chanyeol even was slow to let go of his hand as he stepped away to slip into his shoes.

On Sunday, Jongin made it up to Wonshik and Taemin by going to brunch with them and promising that it was his treat. 

"So that hickey you're not making much effort to hide from us is speaking to me loud and clear," Taemin started, immediately going straight for the jugular. They hadn't even taken sips from their bottomless mimosas yet.

For once, Wonshik took pity on him and came to Jongin’s defense “you talk big for someone who’s having trouble sitting down.” Jongin nearly choked on his spit and he leaned forward, an expectant look on his face.

“So what are _you_ keeping from _me_?” Taemin’s face remained frozen for a few beats before he regained his expression of indifference. 

“The Tinder date that I mentioned a few days ago may have gone well last night. I’m supposed to see Minho again on Wednesday for dinner.” 

Jongin widened his eyes and took a purposeful sip from his mimosa, his gaze never leaving Taemin. 

“Am I missing anything with you?” Jongin turned, looking at Wonshik. 

“Nope, still the same boring me.” 

Taemin narrowed his eyes and leaned across the table, “he’s lying. Taekwoon asked him out after work on Friday.” 

“It wasn’t that big of a deal,” Wonshik countered, going pink. Both pairs of eyes landed on him and he shrunk in his seat, trying to look anywhere but at his friends.

It was a rare treat to see Wonshik so bashful, so Taemin and Jongin took turns poking fun at him, watching as his face got progressively pinker. They both got the stupidest looks on their faces when Wonshik finally broke and told them everything he’ been keeping to himself.

“So he asked you out on Friday and you kept that to yourself?” Jongin admonished. 

Out of the three of them, Wonshik was always full of surprises and secrets, but when it came to his two-year crush on Taekwoon—someone from his department—he had always been pretty candid with them.

That’s why it came as a surprise that they were _just_ finding out about the date. 

“Enough beating around the bush. How was it?” There was a greasy grin on Taemin’s face as he spoke the words and Wonshik gave him a withering look. 

“It was nice. He’s really nice, just like I thought,” Wonshik spoke slowly, saying the words directly into his egg’s benedict. “He’s also a romantic, which I didn’t expect. It seems like he’s liked me for a while.” 

Both Jongin and Taemin shimmied in their seats, grinning with all their teeth.

To an outsider, they probably looked insane, but being aware of the fact that Wonshik’s crush liked him back and had been looking forward to going out with him was enough to make them not care. 

“So it looks like none of us are really single anymore, though I don’t think Jongin’s been single for almost a year now,” when Jongin looked at Taemin, confused, Taemin clarified by adding “emotionally.” 

Jongin wanted to protest, but it was closer to the truth than anything else, so he just had to bear with it.

The rest of brunch went smoothly and as promised, Jongin paid the bill and they went their separate ways. 

At various times of the brunch, each of them had gotten a message from their respective romantic interests, asking if they were free. As a mutual agreement, they all promised to send updates later that night.

Permitting they weren’t too _busy_.

Jongin ran his hand through the soft fur of the black poodle as the dog settled in his lap, yawning. 

“He literally hates anyone that’s not my mom. I have no idea how he warmed up to you so quickly…” Jongin didn’t miss the evil eye Chanyeol gave Toben, but the dog saw it and promptly ignored him, cuddling further into Jongin’s lap.

“I just have a way with animals and babies I guess? They always like me.” 

Chanyeol looked at him with a soft look and Jongin felt his heart melt. 

The way that he was becoming addicted to that expression probably wouldn’t bode well for him, but Jongin was making an attempt not to be too cautious around Chanyeol.

He’d learned that the other was extremely empathetic. Even if Chanyeol didn’t mention it, he picked up on most of Jongin’s feelings like an emotional sponge. 

“I’ll keep that in mind the next time mom asks me to watch this demon. I’ll just drop him off at your house and keep the car running.” The tone of Chanyeol’s voice spoke of both of him joking, yet being completely serious. 

Jongin shrugged and scratched behind Toben’s ears, “I wouldn’t mind honestly. I love babysitting. Just let me know ahead of time.” 

Chanyeol gave a look that said he hadn’t intended on Jongin taking him seriously but was delighted by his response anyway.

At around ten o’clock, when Toben retreated to the pastry shaped dog bed in the corner of Chanyeol’s living room, Jongin stood up and looked down at Chanyeol.

“I should head out. It’s getting late and we have work tomorrow,” Chanyeol stood up too and he reached for Jongin’s hand, swinging it lightly before he leaned down and kissed him. 

“Yeah, if you stay, we probably wouldn’t get enough sleep anyway.” 

The words were just enough to have Jongin feeling that sticky, heavy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He couldn’t resist getting in another kiss before he broke away from Chanyeol and ran to put his shoes on.

“If we keep going, I really won’t go home so have a good night, Yeol. Don’t be so mean to Toben.” Chanyeol gave him a sad puppy dog look that rivaled Toben’s and Jongin just grinned, blowing a flying kiss at him before he pushed open the door and walked out. 

Before Jongin went to bed, he checked his messages and saw a few notifications from the group chat. The first picture was Taekwoon and Wonshik, eating dinner at what looked like an upper scale restaurant. There was a smile on Wonshik’s face and Taekwoon wasn’t grimacing like he usually did when he walked around the office. 

The other message was from Taemin and in classic Taemin-fashion, he and Minho were in bed, making post-coital peace signs. 

He responded to both messages with a slew of emojis, then sent his own picture. 

Crowded together in the small frame, Chanyeol’s head was leaned on top of Jongin’s and Toben was asleep in Jongin’s lap. 

Not waiting for a response, Jongin put his phone away to charge and drifted off to sleep soon after.

Lunchtime at work was the most interesting it’d been in a while. For one, there were three extra people and they had to make room at their small table. 

Wonshik kept shooting nervous glances at Taekwoon, while Sehun looked over Junmyeon with literal heart eyes. Chanyeol, like the friendly person he was, immediately introduced himself to Taekwoon. 

Just as Jongin had expected, Taekwoon kept to himself and only gave short responses whenever he was asked a question. 

"Taekwoon, there's something that I'm dying to know," Taemin started, popping the last forkful of his pasta into his mouth, "what made you ask out Wonshik?" Wonshik shifted in his seat and Taemin shot him a calculating look. 

Taekwoon wiped imaginary crumbs from his mouth and looked over at Wonshik before he answered, "I've been thinking about it for some time now. I caught him staring at me and finally decided to just do it." 

Chanyeol gave a thoughtful nod and Taemin hummed. The answer satisfied him and he ceased the impromptu game of 21 questions. 

For the rest of lunch, the conversation fell to a lull and the only voice that could be heard over everyone else was Chanyeol's. Jongin may have leaned against Chanyeol as he rambled and he tried to add his input every few minutes. Chanyeol didn't seem to mind though and he also leaned into Jongin, grinning. 

This was definitely something Jongin could get used to.


End file.
